An Analysis of "On the Other Hand"
"On the Other Hand", what is on the other hand? Rachel Hadas tells about the living, the dead and shows the reader the other side of usual thoughts about the dead and living. She lists the faults of the living and the virtues of the dead, in order to explain her first statement, "it is no wonder why we love the dead". Yet, then turns everything around again in the last statement of this free verse poem. Rachel Hadas poem, "On the Other Hand" clearly depicts the many differences of the "brittle, easily wounded" living and the "patient, peaceful" dead.
In the first stanza of the poem, the dead are said to be admired in a way because of all the flaws that the living inhibit. The living are
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The reader is forced to see the other side of the usual thoughts of the living and dead. Hadas is in fact showing the reader the "other hand", or other side of the situation. She continues this approach in the first part of the third stanza; telling of the ability that the dead have to "glide across the hours" with time being no boundary to them. The dead have no haste, instead the live in "peaceful places, in unhurried silence". All this relates back to the first line of the poem, "no wonder why we love the dead", explaining her reasons for adoring the dead.
However, just as the reader has adjusted to this new view of things, he is shown the one negative side to being dead. The last statement of the desperate longings of the dead, presents the reader with another turning point in his views. The last lines portray the dead as "desperate presences hammering at the gates", illustrating the dead to be longing for something. The reader tries to distinguish what the "gates" are; possibly these gates are the gates to life. It would make sense that the dead are, in their free, careless, and un-timed existence, in fact longing of the happiness of being social and
As the first poem in the book it sums up the primary focus of the works in its exploration of loss, grieving, and recovery. The questions posed about the nature of God become recurring themes in the following sections, especially One and Four. The symbolism includes the image of earthly possessions sprawled out like gangly dolls, a reference possibly meant to bring about a sense of nostalgia which this poem does quite well. The final lines cement the message that this is about loss and life, the idea that once something is lost, it can no longer belong to anyone anymore brings a sense...
The readers are apt to feel confused in the contrasting ways the woman in this poem has been depicted. The lady described in the poem leads to contrasting lives during the day and night. She is a normal girl in her Cadillac in the day while in her pink Mustang she is a prostitute driving on highways in the night. In the poem the imagery of body recurs frequently as “moving in the dust” and “every time she is touched”. The reference to woman’s body could possibly be the metaphor for the derogatory ways women’s labor, especially the physical labor is represented. The contrast between day and night possibly highlights the two contrasting ways the women are represented in society.
In Susan Mitchell’s poem “The Dead”, the speaker describes the life of a dead person to show that those we lose aren’t truly gone. The poem starts out talking about what dead people do in their afterlife, starting to form a picture in the reader’s head. Towards the middle, she starts using personal connections and memories associated with what the dead are doing. This shows us that they will always be there to remind us of memories shared together. At the end of the poem, the reader shows us that she is talking about someone who has passed that was close to her in her childhood. Perhaps Mitchell wrote this trying to get over the loss of a loved one, showing that they will never be forgotten. The poem has a
as told from the point of view of a friend serving as pall bearer. The poem
In the first instance, death is portrayed as a “bear” (2) that reaches out seasonally. This is then followed by a man whom “ comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse / / to buy me…” This ever-changing persona that encapsulates death brings forth a curiosity about death and its presence in the living world. In the second stanza, “measles-pox” (6) is an illness used to portray death’s existence in a distinctive embodiment. This uncertainty creates the illusion of warmth and welcomenesss and is further demonstrated through the reproduction of death as an eminent figure. Further inspection allows the reader to understand death as a swift encounter. The quick imagery brought forth by words such as “snaps” and “shut” provoke a sense of startle in which the audience may dispel any idea of expectedness in death’s coming. This essential idea of apparent arrival transitions to a slower, foreseeable fate where one can imagine the enduring pain experienced “an iceberg between shoulder blades” (line 8). This shift characterizes the constant adaptation in appearance that death acquires. Moreover, the idea of warmth radiating from death’s presence reemerges with the introduction to a “cottage of darkness” (line 10), which to some may bring about a feeling of pleasantry and comfort. It is important to note that line 10 was the sole occurrence of a rhetorical question that the speaker
after death is what is very dissimilar. In the poem when she says "We passed
Death is a reality that can be interpreted in many ways. Some people fear the possibility of no longer living and others welcome the opportunity for a new life in the afterlife. Many poets have been inspired by death, be it by the approaching death of loved ones or a battle for immortality. Just as each poet is inspired differently, each poem casts a different hue of light on the topic of death giving readers a unique way to look at death.
The poem does not have a perfect rhyme; however, it still has some rhythms making the poem connected. For instance, “Immortality” (line 4) with “Civility” (line 8), “finally” and “Eternity”; they all make the poem has beautiful rhythms and poetic musicality. Dickinson also uses many art techniques; for instance, personification and metaphors, to make the poem more appealing. Dickinson personified “Death” as a gentleman in the poem, which it the most important personification in the poem. Dashes are another literary trope commonly used by Dickinson, in this poem she also uses many dashes. Dashes can make readers’ reader speed slow down. Hence, readers can have more time to consider the meaning of the poem. Besides that, the tempo of the poem also influenced by the use of capital letters for common nouns. The speaker of the poem is a woman who has an unusual trip with death and immortality, at the end of the trip, the woman realizes that death is not the end of the
In this poem, the woman did not just die but she has been dead. She is communicating from beyond the grave, by describing her journey with death. Death is portrayed as a gentleman who takes the speaker on a ride to eternity. Dickinson wrote this poem in a way that the reader is able to feel what the woman is going through. In this poem, death is seen as a passive and not as being something bad. Dickinson’s form and tone enables the reader to have an understanding of the message she is trying to convey. In this poem, each verse paints a piece of a picture for the reader and as you get to the end of the poem the picture is completed.
“The Dead” is truly a warning against falling into society's monotony and letting your life and death blur together to the point that neither have any meaning. It shows us an in depth look at the feelings that come with going through the motions, the isolation and anxiety of a life not lived. It forces us to see how quickly we are all headed towards death and how little we do to live in the meantime. We all too often choose instead to blend in and flatten out. And eventually, like Gabriel, we will face the reality of life and death, whether we are ready or not. “His soul swooned slowly as he heard the snow falling faintly through the universe and faintly falling, like the descent of their last end, upon all the living and the
The poem, “After Great Pain”, by Emily Dickinson, is one that conveys an inner struggle of emotion and the process that a person goes through after experiencing suffering or pain. Through this poem, Dickinson utilizes physical reactions to allude to the emotional pain that can make people feel numb and empty. Included in this poem is an array of literary devices, such as oxymorons, similes, and personification. These devices help show how death and grief can be confronted, whether it be by giving into the pain or by regaining emotional strength, letting go, and moving on with life. As we work on the project, we discuss multiple aspects of the poem and how the structure and diction alludes the meaning of the poem.
Dickinson’s “How many times these low feet staggered-” and “The Bustle in a House” both have the theme of death in common. However, each poem addresses a different perspective of death; one focuses on the deceased while the other focuses on those the dead leave behind. Each deals with death as a means to an end. In the case of the first poem, death is a way to escape life. In the case of the second, death is a force acting against the relationship of the speaker and the deceased.
In contrast with the sinister implications about death of the previous poem, Because I coul...
The first quatrain of the poem begins undermining the idea of death by personifying it. Death is personified by Donne throughout the poem as he challenges death by stating that it is not the “mighty and dreadful” aspect of life that people are afraid of, but as an escape from life where people can find peace after death because “nor yet canst thou kill me” (Donne 1100). He argues that death does not really kill those whom it thinks it kills to further beat death into humility. In the opening line of the poem he uses an apostrophe, “Death, be not proud..” to begin with a dramatic tone to argue with death as people’s adversary (Donne 1100). Death is given negative human traits, such as pride, but also inferiority and pretense.
A pastor has a great responsibility to minister the Word of God and to be a shepherd to his people. The pastor must be committed to biblical truths when he engages the work of the ministry. Some of these truths include: The Bible is the infallible Word of God, his preaching must be from the Word of God, and he must do proper exegesis to get to the authorial intent and proclaim that to his congregation.